Mathew Gearhart

A response to Bella Epstein

In adolescence, there is no reflection nor contemplation.
Your mind is an avenue of pure physical observation.
Thoughts are simple, unable to critique or perceive a larger concept.
Childhood is the epitome of being, of living in the now.
Of pure perception free, quite blissful ignorance.
Your identity, who you are, is not in question.
First you must learn the simple lessons
 and essential aspects of life.

As you age this all changes.
All you can do is reflect.
Reflect on who you are and what it all means.
Contemplate your actions and beliefs.
Your identity is now under full investigation.
Who are you?
Are you intelligent or dimwitted?
Are you an artist or a scientist?
Are your actions moral or malevolent?
Do you even know who you are?
Do you find that your spoken words
do not listen to your lingering thoughts and feelings?
Are you one man around your mother,
another with your friends?
Is it even fair to say that you have identifiable traits?
Considering the complexity of the human condition,
I suspect not.

Mathew Gearhart